4.5/5 Stars (Note: If you DESPISE reality TV, I would not recommend it)

General Description: Fizzy is a romance author who hasn't felt love in over a year and a half. Needless to say, she's fresh out of inspiration for her next book. Luckily, enter Connor Prince: a man who wants to make documentaries but his boss just told him to create a reality TV dating show. Connor comes up with the idea to use this new gene-based matchmaking app to see if he can help one lucky woman find her match, based of course on audience opinions of who they think is the best match for her. Connor recruits Fizzy for the TV show, but he gets much more than he bargains for...how will Fizzy fair after the True Love Experiment?

The good:
- I am a reality TV fan so the entire premise was enticing to read.
- Surprisingly for Christina Lauren, I liked the kind of sci-fi vibes in this book thanks to the match making application premise. You get quite a bit of detail on the app in the book!
- The cast of characters in this book was hilarious, especially seeing the dates Fizzy goes on.
- I liked the subplot that involved Fizzy's "niece" and Connor's daughter. It added a bit of depth to the book that I wasn't expecting.

The loss of a half star:
- Fizzy is just a bit too cringy for me. Some of her comments make me pause the audiobook and come back to it later

Overall: If you like reality TV in any aspect, you'd probably enjoy this romance novel :)

4/5 Stars - says it's a standalone adventure but is it really? Please keep that in mind as there may be spoilers in this review to other Jackaby books, but as it is a standalone, I will review it assuming there are no spoilers for other books.

General Description: Abigail Rook can see auras. She hasn't always been able to, but after her employer Jackaby lost the sight, she gained it. Now, after months of training, Rook has to try to save the town of New Fiddleham after many people have gone missing, after many objects have been stolen, and when the case hits close to home for Rook, she's more invested than ever in honing her new ability while trying to keep the town of New Fiddleham safe.

The good:
- The writing in this book was extremely quick and humorous to me.
- I loved the pacing of the book, I feel like I couldn't put it down.
- The side characters and world-building were outstanding.
- The plot twists had my jaw on the floor.

The loss of a star:
- First off, the subplot with the parents confused me and it could have not been in there in my opinion.
- While this is a standalone, it seems very intertwined with the Jackaby series? I felt like I was getting spoiled for the entire series left and right.

Overall: If you're looking to get into a new fast-paced fantasy world, this fits the bill, but maybe read the whole Jackaby series first.

3/5 Stars - I will say before this review I am not 100% sure I am the best fit to actually read this book (I think that's the first i've ever said that!)

General Description: Ben sat his mom and stepdad down two months ago to tell them he's gay. Present day: Ben sat his mom and stepdad down to tell them he got his best friend, Maxie, pregnant and that he wants to keep the baby. Ben has to figure out his feelings for his friend Gio, his relationship with his best friend Mo, and of course, try to handle the situation of wanting to keep the baby while Maxie may have a different idea of what she wants to happen with the baby. How will Ben's year work out?

The good:
- The love interest was like the savior of this book. He was the voice of reason and I really enjoyed him.
- The mother was fantastic in my opinion, I really enjoyed seeing that support for a main character in this book.
- The subplot with the stepdad made my entire heart swell.

The loss of 2 stars:
- Ben as a whole I did not find very likeable. He was inconsistent (he seemed extremely smart and had a social circle, but that was not always portrayed in the book) and even after being told how to address a situation, he'd forget and make it worse? He shows some growth suddenly at the end, but it was not steady progress that made sense to me.
- Slower paced book as well

Overall: I think this could be a really impactful book for some out there and it has a unique take on teen pregnancy, but it was not the book for me.

4/5 Stars

General Description: Ava Chen's brother is leaving the country and her brother ask his BFF, Alex Volkov, to watch over her. Alex moves in next door to Ava and Ava's friends egged her into trying to get some emotions out of Alex. After spending some time together, Ava and Alex begin to fall for each other. However, Alex has a dark secret. Will they be able to survive the fall out of the secret, or will they break apart before they've truly been together?

The goods:
- For a beginning spice book in my opinion it was done well.
- I liked both character's progression in the book.
- I think the mystery in this book was a great surprise.
- This book had a lot of depth I was not anticipating and I really enjoyed reading it.

The loss of a star:
- I feel like this could've been "twisted love and mystery" because it felt like there were 2 genres that just didn't blend very well? I liked both storylines separately, but they didn't seem to bridge together smoothly.

Overall: If you're looking to dip your toe into spicy books, this is a good starter. The plot might be a touch choppy but definitely creative!

4.5/5 stars

General Description: Adjunct professor Elsie has to make money on the side with fake dating. However, she now up for an MIT professor position. One of the interviewers? Enter Jack Smith: brother to someone she's fake dating and someone Elsie has known longer than she even thought. Can these two keep the interview fair, or will a relationship develop that surprises both of them?

The goods:
- There was a lot of depth in this book that was refreshing to see, including a mystery that was a nice touch.
- I really liked Jack and Elsie as characters.
- I think the science in this kept it interesting. 
- I enjoyed the callback to other books
- The side characters I thought were some of the best Hazelwood has written.

The loss of a half star:
- Listen, I feel like there was an issue hammered out multiple times and took way too long to resolve. Similar to Drunk on Love by Jasmine Guillory where age was harped on for what I felt was too long, it was a similar deal here. 

Overall: I think this was the best Hazelwood book I've read and would recommend it for any romance reader.

5/5 stars.

General Description: Kiki is in a critical year for school - she has the opportunity for a prestigious internship, but her mentor says she must elevate her radio show, Brown Sugar, to prove how she can diversify her platforms further. Her mentor suggests working with new student: Malakai. Malakai is causing a ruckus among the women at Kiki's school and is the last person Kiki wants to work with. When they develop a scheme to fake date each other for the benefit of their projects, will they be able to get out of it smoothly, or will emotions get in the way?

All the goodies:
- The characters are magnificently written.
- The scene with school politics was fresh and interesting.
- How the relationship develops is done in a unique way while using familiar tropes.
- The audiobook narrator helped make this book. Her emotions related to each character made the reading so much more enjoyable.
- The pacing kept you interested the entire time and how everything came together at the end had me cheering in the grocery store.

Overall: If you like new adult romance, read this. You will NOT regret it!

3/5 stars

General Description: Cooking is science, right? Well, no one takes that more literally than Elizabeth Zott. She sees life as a complete science, working through traumatic situations through scientific steps and keeping emotions at bay. She attempts to further her science career, but after a tragic accident and a child being brought into the world, Zott has to re-prioritize. After defending her daughter's lunch from a schoolmate to the schoolmate's TV producer dad, Elizabeth finds herself on a cooking show. Will she be able to make America fall in love with her, or will she simply think about cooking with science?

The good:
- I do think the concept is interesting
- I appreciate the commentary on the 1950s/60s for women
- This book was clearly written with a lot of feelings.

The loss of 2 stars:
- The book is not funny.
- The book seems marketed completely differently than what the book is about. I did not have trigger warnings on my audiobook and honestly, I wish I at least had some warning. 

Overall: If you like adult fiction (and don't need this to be laugh-out-loud funny as it says), you may like this, but check the trigger warnings before reading.

3.5/5 Stars. Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this novel.

General Description: Rory and her grandmother treasure hunt. Mainly Gram, but Rory is trying to prove herself with this latest call that takes them to Iceland, where Gram and Rory must find Gunnar's brother, Einar, and bring him home to their grandfather, Henning. The theory is: Einar and a band are traveling to open a gate to hell. Will Rory, Gram, and Gunnar be able to stop them before they open a gate and let out demons onto Iceland?

The good:
- Extremely fast paced book, it grips you right away. 
- I do like the magical element of the book
- I think the adventure element and the description of certain scenes were done so well it felt like I was there, which really doesn't happen as often as I'd like.

The missing 1.5 stars:
- I felt the romance aspects were a bit forced and Rory's overall progress was odd?
- While it was so fast paced in the first half, it stop abruptly, which left me wanting more but not in a good way? I wish this book was longer to give more explanation to the world that's being built (if there is not a book 2 I will be sad lol)

Overall: If you're looking for a fast paced, high action fantasy read, this fits the bill perfectly!

2.5/5 Stars

General description: Belly is in college and has been with Jeremiah for two years. However, after some massive shifts in their relationship, the entirety of both their families are feeling the shifts. Will everyone get hurt on the other side of this summer, or will we finally get some peace?

The 2.5 stars gained:
- Wrapping up a series always feels nice.
- Again for me, the parent relationships saves these books. I am most interested in those relationships.
- I haven't been a fan of Taylor, but she redeemed herself in this book for me.

The 2.5 stars lost:
- The entire premise of this book was beyond me, especially after how book 2 ended. I feel like this could have been done in the first 2 books and scraped this one. I think this was just an elongated process.
- Also, for being college kids, I see no growth from how any of the main characters acted. Some side characters show growth, but not the main 3 I was hoping to see grow.

Overall: If you've read the other two, this won't hurt you to read.

3/5 stars

General description: Belly doesn't spend this summer at Cousin's beach, yet he still gets wrapped up with the boys. When Jeremiah calls Belly to say that Conrad has disappeared, Belly comes running. There is unfinished business with both Fisher boys that Belly needs to take care of, but will that make her stronger or leave her heartbroken?

The 3 stars:
- It is a quick read.
- I appreciated there was a more straightforward plot.
- Again, the parents in this book are making it for me.

The loss of 2 stars:
- I don't like Belly, Jeremiah, or Conrad if I'm being honest. They all have shown very little growth from the first book. I was expecting after a year passed to have some growth but I was mistaken.
- The ending was also very confusing and I feel like it ended that way ONLY to get a 3rd book out of this series.

Overall: If you read the first one, you may as well read this book and the next. It's quick enough.